Official: Cool Rivers Are Tempting But Dangerous On Hot Days

New Hampshire officials are warning anyone looking to beat the heat in local rivers may get swept away by deceptively strong currents.

Hooksett Fire Chief James Burkush says the recent rescue of five stranded kayakers on the Merrimack River in Hooksett shows the danger of the rivers. WMUR-TV reports water levels are much higher than expected due to recent wet weather.

Patrick Malfait of Contoocook River Canoe Co. isn't renting any boats due to the high waters in the rivers, saying it's too dangerous to have people go out with the recent snow melting and rainwater feeding the river.

Malfait says the steep embankments of the river make rescuing anyone who falls in difficult, and that the waters are much colder than the air.

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The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association released temperature data for the past six months on Monday. Reports that NOAA’s data shows this to be hottest first half of the year yet in the Granite state.

New Hampshire wasn’t the only state to break records: all told twenty-eight states had their hottest first six months on record, and for another 15 states the temperatures ranked in the all-time top-ten.